Students complete a unit of lessons examining the cultural context of the novel, 'The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.' They write a critique of the novel, compare/contrast two published critiques, and explore various websites.

Middle and high schoolers identify how to discover a word's meaning by exploring context clues and any pictures, diagrams, photographs, and charts that might be included. They continue this process with other examples and locate one on...

Partners choose, research, and analyze fictional or historical characters and design character life boxes to represent them. They also compose a rhyme royal, which they understand inductively by deconstructing examples. Based largely on...

Primary learners complete pre reading, writing, during reading, and interdisciplinary activities for the book First Day of School. They will  complete journal entries, answer short answer questions, have discussions, and much...

Fifth graders write a speech.  In this history lesson, 5th graders define the word infamy and listen to a speech by FDR.  Students work in groups to summarize his speech and rewrite sections of the speech.

If you are teaching metaphors in your language arts class, consider using this presentation to illustrate several examples of classic metaphors. Body metaphors, war metaphors, and comic metaphors all help learners understand the...

Powerful images set the stage for Karen Hesse's historical fiction novel, Out of the Dust. The photos, maps, quotes from the text, critical thinking questions, and background information on the Dust Bowl period are all included, and will...

Provide an opportunity for scholars to play around with words. They start with 12 root words and add prefixes to them to create new ones. There are five prefixes here, and learners list the new words beside each. Consider reviewing the...

Use some of these 80-word passages to practice reading fluency with your beginners. Project the text so all learners can see it, pointing to each word as scholars recite them one at a time. Warn readers of irregularly spelled words by...

Are you introducing your class to the horrors of eating unhealthy? This lesson contains 24 reading comprehension questions relating to the non-fiction book. Readers are encouraged to copy these and answer them in their reading...

A great toolbox of ideas for any teacher preparing to teach the novel Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt, this resource includes a short biography of Natalie Babbitt, several discussion questions that could double as writing prompts,...

A whale of a lesson is sure to intrigue your elementary oceanographers! Learn about the mammals of the sea with a series of activities about whales, dolphins, and porpoises. Kids complete worksheets about the anatomy of a whale, create a...

This compelling plan based on the letters in the book Dear Miss Breed engages readers in learning what it was like for Japanese Americans following the attacks at Pearl Harbor. After reading the letters, young scholars will...

A series of reading activities is sure to engage your young readers! Based on comparing and contrasting ideas, the packet provides opportunities to compare characters, themes, texts, and other elements of fiction.

Have you ever read part of a story and had to figure out what the rest was about? Practice making inferences with several short passages and multiple choice questions.

Sometimes it takes a work of fiction to demonstrate nonfictional tragedies and events. George, an escaped slave, describes to Mr. Wilson the hardships of his life in a short passage from Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel, Uncle...

Green roofs aren't just eco-friendly — they are literally green with trees. Groups learn about the concept of green roofs in order to be able to design one. The groups design a 5,000-square-foot green roof for a fictional apartment row...

Bring the fun and whimsy of Beverly Cleary into your classroom with a teaching guide created to accompany the Ramona series. The guide offers several ideas for classroom use, including independent reading, reading aloud, and literature...

What will that cost in the future? The scenario provides pupils with a growth as a Consumer Price Index. Learners create functions for a given item to determine future prices and graph them. Class members then compare their functions to...

"We need forgiveness and someone to blame." True? Class members continue their analysis of the central claims in Walter Mosley's essay and the support he offers for these claims about people's fascination with crime.

Second graders read a short story and discuss whether they would give it a thumbs up or down and why. students write a group review on that story supporting why they gave it the up or down thumb. They choose and read a short story and...

Students use excerpts from books to determine whether sentences are fact, fiction, or opinion. They state reasons for their choices.

Students distinguish and evaluate information from various sources and determine whether the information found is fiction or facts. They also view television shows, radio stations and newspaper articles Internet sites are also visited by...

Young scholars explore a given historical fiction story. In groups, they research selected topics dealing with the story and determine what is fiction and what is fact. Students create a multimedia presentation about their findings and...